SAN NARCISO, Calif. (Bennington Vale Evening Transcript) -- Plumes of white smoke billowed from the Sistine Chapel chimney Wednesday, signifying the election of a new pope. Appearing on the iconic balcony of St. Peter's Basilica shortly after the conclave appointed a new bishop of Rome, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina greeted adoring Catholics to shouts of "habemus papam," and then led a prayer for his predecessor, Benedict XVI. Some Vatican watchers expressed excitement at the uniqueness of the new pontiff and the conclave's unprecedented decision to break with two thousand years of tradition. Bergoglio is neither Italian nor European, has no ties to the Roman government and invented his own papal name instead of selecting an established title, as is customary. But this newness has rankled dyed-in-the-wool Catholics and conservative lawmakers in the United States, particularly in Arizona, who say Bergoglio's installment as pope is a setback for immigration reform and the terrifying result of ignoring warnings that "Mexicans are coming to take our jobs."

SAN NARCISO, Calif. (Bennington Vale Evening Transcript) -- By November 27, Catholic parishes in English speaking countries will witness a small but pivotal revolution. After that date, church goers will begin using a new translation of the Roman Missal, the official instruction book for administering rites and prayers during the celebration of Mass. Confronted by centuries of criticism over shaky interpretations of texts not originally written in English, an international committee labored under a Vatican directive to more closely align phrasing and semantics to Latin. Dioceses around the globe are preparing wary priests and parishioners for one of the biggest transformations in Catholic worship since the 1960s, when the Second Vatican Council enacted several amendments in the liturgy to modernize Mass. But the announcement has met with backlash from countless members of the clergy, who claim that the nonsensical alterations will jeopardize the individual faithful’s “personal encounter with the Lord,” an expression the Church said will now be referred to as “deity detente and acculturation.”